It was an event called to seek solutions to the rise in homegrown hate crimes plaguing the New York region, but two Democratic Congress members on hand also used the occasion to discuss President Donald Trump’s recent order to kill Iranian General Qasem Soleimani in a drone missile strike outside an airport in Baghdad.
Both Bill Pascrell and Josh Gottheimer expressed concern about the ramifications of killing for the safety of Americans abroad and at home, as protests continue to rock Tehran and Iran threatens reprisals.
Pascrell said he wanted to know more about the so-called imminent threats that drove a decision that’s unraveling political stability in the Middle East. He said lawmakers in Washington have been kept out of the loop about the intelligence behind the move against the military leader, a close confidante of Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei.
“I’m not so sure that that death made us safer,” he said. “And while this man has done horrible things — no one can defend his character — I believe that we’re talking about a very specific incident here, which was done to protect American lives. […] So if it’s done that way, then there should be no hiding of anything.”
Gottheimer called Soleimani a killer responsible for the deaths of hundreds of Americans and thousands in Syria, and a key supporter of Hezbollah, an Iranian backed militant group based in Lebanon, on the Israel’s northern border.
“Killing Soleimani is a right response to his heinous actions over many, many years,” he said. “Now we have to understand what the strategy is going forward in the region, and to ensure the safety and security of Americans abroad and at home, and understand the intelligence that was used in making this decision, and of course the intelligence going forward. I think that’s critical.”
Congressional leaders were to be briefed on the killing by administration officials on Wednesday.
“Are we safer today? That’s going to be a very interesting debate and discussion, when we have it, after the briefings,” said Pascrell. “I think you’re going to be very surprised as to what comes out.”
Trump on Tuesday said his decision was warranted.
“We saved a lot of lives by terminating his life. A lot of lives were saved,” he said. “They were planning something and you’re going to be hearing about it, or various people in Congress are going to be hearing about it tomorrow.”
The comments by the federal lawmakers came amid a gathering of community leaders in Hackensack called to mull the best response to prevent homegrown terror attacks, like the shooting at a Kosher grocery in Jersey City and the machete assault on a Hanukah celebration in Monsey. Now, they said, their communities are also concerned about the possible repercussions of the Soleimani killing.
“Members of my community call me on Friday afternoons, wondering if it’s safe to go to shul,” said state Assemblyman Gary Schaer. “This is not America.”
The Passaic County Democrat said the Legislature’s expected to vote on his bill that would expand the crime of terrorism to include those who incite hate crimes against groups or individuals based on their race, religion, sexual orientation, gender or creed.
Those attending the session emphasized the need for solidarity.
“We stand against any attack against any human being, any innocent human being, any person of faith, any house of worship,” said Imam Mohammad Charaf of the El Zahra Islamic Center in Midland Park. “An attack on them is an attack on all of us.”
